Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Could light Pollution be another hazardous consequence of urban living?
Living in cities has always been known to increase most individual's stress level. The busy streets, crazy traffic, high noise level and air pollution are some of the things that might be adding to the toll a fast paced city life can take on one's health. Now scientists are adding the super bright nightlights of cities to the list and calling it 'Light Pollution'.
Lockley calls any light after dusk as unnatural, he says that with any such exposure "our daytime physiology is triggered and our brains become more alert, our heart rates go up, as does our temperature, and production of the hormone melatonin is suppressed".
The article also mentions Ken Wright at the University of Colorado in Boulder who conducted studies on camping. He found that for campers midnight meant middle of the night, whereas in urban areas the constant presence of light prolongs the daytime, thus leading people living in cities to stay awake longer, sleep later and hence sleep less. This could be causing health problems not yet clearly documented.
Lockley raises a thought-provoking question; "As a society we need to think, do we really need some of these amenities that are putting light pollution into the environment?" adding "Do we need 24/7 garages, do we need 24/7 supermarkets, do we need 24/7 TV? It was only in 1997 that the BBC turned off and there was the national anthem and we all went to bed."
Here are some excerpts of Ellie's article;
The International Dark Sky Association is an organisation of astronomers that aims to teach how to preserve the night sky. Member Scott Kardel says he believes in balance: “While we need certain amounts of light at night for safety, commerce and more, we also need to be more careful about how much light we use, where we use it and for how long.”
But at a more abstract level, Kardel also believes that “having bright skies takes something away from us. All of our ancestors had star-filled skies that inspired countless people in art, literature, religion, science and philosophy.”
It might not be plausible to put the metropolis to bed at dusk, but cities can mitigate some of the worst light pollution. “Proper outdoor lighting,” says Kardel, “conserves energy, reduces glare” and cuts back on so-called light trespass, for example when your neighbour’s bedroom light bleeds into your sitting room.
Lockley thinks LEDS are the “problem, but also the solution: they allow much more sophisticated lighting systems.” The blueness can be fixed, he says. “It is possible to create LED light with multiple colours – you can alter the colours for the right time of day and the right application.”
“We might not quite be at the point where cities are putting in those types of tuneable street lamps,” he adds. But many communities in the UK have either adopted or trialled “part night lighting”, switching off the lights where they’re not needed or lowering illumination levels for part of the night. Motion-sensing technologies are being tested in the Netherlands and Ireland.
At the centre of this shift is a change in the attitudes of city residents and their governments. In Hong Kong, until only a few years ago the government avoided even using the term “light pollution”, says Pun. “They wouldn’t even admit such a thing exists. If you call it something else, like ‘light nuisance’, then I guess it will make life a little easier. Even though it seems like a gloomy situation, no pun intended, I do see a change of mindset.”
In the end the article has some wonderful tips on how to reduce light pollution.
It’s an obvious one, but switch off any lights you are not using.
• Ensure indoor and outdoor lighting is directed at what you’re trying to light and that it’s shaded. Table and floor lamps are better for this than overhead lights.
• Use low-watt lightbulbs – you’ll save on bills and reduce glare.
• Install dimmer switches so you can alter brightness to suit ambient light.
• Use motion sensors or timers so outdoor lights are only on when they need to be.
• Install thick curtains or blinds to minimise light escaping your home at night.
• Ask your local councillor to get street lamps fitted with directional, low energy lights – after all, residential areas don’t need to be lit up like football pitches 24 hours a day.
References:
Urban light pollution: why we're all living with permanent 'mini jetlag' (The Guardian- Oct 23rd 2014)
In the article Urban light pollution: why we're all living with permanent 'mini jetlag'(The Guardian) Ellie Violet Bramley writes about studies that have shown that exposure to light after dusk is quite literally
unnatural, and may be detrimental to health. Astronomer Dr Jason Pun of the Hong Kong University department of physics has been studying light pollution and has done several studies on the subject. Recently they set up 18 stations around Hong Kong stretching from commercial urban sector to residential neighborhoods and on to rural areas. When they compared the levels of light to the standard (meaning how bright the sky would be without artificial lights), they found that the lit areas were about a 1000 times brighter.
 |
| Hong Kong Skyline By Barry Chum (Own work) [CC-BY-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons |
According to Dr. Pun, “Similar studies in major capitals like Berlin and Vienna, would find something more of the order of 100 to 200 times brighter.”
Most cities like Hong Kong, New York, Tokyo and Las Vegas may be proud of their super bright nightscapes and get many visitors who come to see these illuminated cities. But these brightly lit skies may also be causing health problems. Steven Lockley, a neuroscientist and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School has been studying the effect of light on alertness, sleep, melatonin levels and its overall impact on human physiology.
Lockley calls any light after dusk as unnatural, he says that with any such exposure "our daytime physiology is triggered and our brains become more alert, our heart rates go up, as does our temperature, and production of the hormone melatonin is suppressed".
The article also mentions Ken Wright at the University of Colorado in Boulder who conducted studies on camping. He found that for campers midnight meant middle of the night, whereas in urban areas the constant presence of light prolongs the daytime, thus leading people living in cities to stay awake longer, sleep later and hence sleep less. This could be causing health problems not yet clearly documented.
Lockley raises a thought-provoking question; "As a society we need to think, do we really need some of these amenities that are putting light pollution into the environment?" adding "Do we need 24/7 garages, do we need 24/7 supermarkets, do we need 24/7 TV? It was only in 1997 that the BBC turned off and there was the national anthem and we all went to bed."
Here are some excerpts of Ellie's article;
The International Dark Sky Association is an organisation of astronomers that aims to teach how to preserve the night sky. Member Scott Kardel says he believes in balance: “While we need certain amounts of light at night for safety, commerce and more, we also need to be more careful about how much light we use, where we use it and for how long.”
But at a more abstract level, Kardel also believes that “having bright skies takes something away from us. All of our ancestors had star-filled skies that inspired countless people in art, literature, religion, science and philosophy.”
It might not be plausible to put the metropolis to bed at dusk, but cities can mitigate some of the worst light pollution. “Proper outdoor lighting,” says Kardel, “conserves energy, reduces glare” and cuts back on so-called light trespass, for example when your neighbour’s bedroom light bleeds into your sitting room.
Lockley thinks LEDS are the “problem, but also the solution: they allow much more sophisticated lighting systems.” The blueness can be fixed, he says. “It is possible to create LED light with multiple colours – you can alter the colours for the right time of day and the right application.”
“We might not quite be at the point where cities are putting in those types of tuneable street lamps,” he adds. But many communities in the UK have either adopted or trialled “part night lighting”, switching off the lights where they’re not needed or lowering illumination levels for part of the night. Motion-sensing technologies are being tested in the Netherlands and Ireland.
At the centre of this shift is a change in the attitudes of city residents and their governments. In Hong Kong, until only a few years ago the government avoided even using the term “light pollution”, says Pun. “They wouldn’t even admit such a thing exists. If you call it something else, like ‘light nuisance’, then I guess it will make life a little easier. Even though it seems like a gloomy situation, no pun intended, I do see a change of mindset.”
In the end the article has some wonderful tips on how to reduce light pollution.
It’s an obvious one, but switch off any lights you are not using.
• Ensure indoor and outdoor lighting is directed at what you’re trying to light and that it’s shaded. Table and floor lamps are better for this than overhead lights.
• Use low-watt lightbulbs – you’ll save on bills and reduce glare.
• Install dimmer switches so you can alter brightness to suit ambient light.
• Use motion sensors or timers so outdoor lights are only on when they need to be.
• Install thick curtains or blinds to minimise light escaping your home at night.
• Ask your local councillor to get street lamps fitted with directional, low energy lights – after all, residential areas don’t need to be lit up like football pitches 24 hours a day.
References:
Urban light pollution: why we're all living with permanent 'mini jetlag' (The Guardian- Oct 23rd 2014)
Music and your health.
"If music be the food of love, play on"
(William Shakespeare)
When we read that we are bound to agree. Music has been an integral part of most civilizations and still is. Mankind has used music in so many ways; to entertain, to express emotions and get feelings across, to heal and recover, to relax and meditate, and to learn or record facts and history to name a few.Music is like the soundtrack of our lives. How often we hear a song and can right away be transported to another time, another place where we heard it first or where it impacted us. How often has music brightened up our mood or helped us relax. How many times has music brought so many together, that is why it is the universal language. It is clear that we need music in our lives, “Without music, life would be a mistake.” as Friedrich Nietzsche concluded.
Over the decades, countless studies and continued research work has repeatedly supported the belief that music can be more than just food for the soul, it can have real beneficial effects on our overall health and well-being. Here are some of those benefits:
Physical benefits
Pain:
According to a study published in Frontiers of Psychology, scientists found that listening to music that is relaxing, highly pleasant, familiar, and self-chosen, reduced pain and increase functional mobility in fibromyalgia patients.
Endurance:
British researchers studied 12 healthy male college students riding stationary bikes while listening to six different songs of their choosing, each with a different tempo. It was observed that not only their pedaling speed changed along with the tempo of the music so did their overall affect. As tempo slowed, they slowed the pedaling, their heart rate decreased, breathing slowed and mileage fell. But as music tempo increased so did their pedaling speed, heart rate, distance covered and showed reduced exertion. Hence the conclusion 'healthy individuals performing submaximal exercise not only worked harder with faster music but also chose to do so and enjoyed the music more when it was played at a faster tempo."
In another study, researchers had 20 moderately active adults (22±4 y), unfamiliar with interval exercise, complete an acute session of SIT(Sprint Interval training) under two different conditions: music and no music. Leading to the conclusion ' Music enhanced in-task performance and enjoyment of an acute bout of SIT.'
Post-exercise recovery:
After a workout music not only helps relax, it also helps the body recover faster. A study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research showed beneficial effect of both music and rhythm was greater toward the end of the recovery period. Results suggest that listening to music during non structured recovery can be used by professional athletes to enhance recovery from intense exercise.
Sleep:
A study showed classical music to improve the quality of sleep in individuals with poor sleep. Relaxing classical music can thus be used to help alleviate insomnia instead of sleep inducing medications.
Eating Habits:
A recent study found that with softening of the music and lighting while eating, diners end up eating less and enjoying the food more, suggesting that a more relaxed environment increases satisfaction and decreases consumption.
Blood Flow:
Previous studies have demonstrated that music may influence physiologic parameters such as heart rate and blood pressure. A study of the effect of music on endothelial function showed an increased blood flow and a happier mood.
Mental Benefits
Stress:
Over the past years, music has been increasingly used as a therapeutic tool in the treatment of different diseases in healthy and ill subjects over recent years (e.g., the so called "Mozart effect"). Music has been found to lead to release of biochemical measurable stress-reducing effects in some individuals. Some kinds of music have also been known to cause changes in cardiac and neurological functions.
It has also been seen that music helps individuals perform better under pressure if listening to music. Such a study involving basketball players known to choke under pressure, showed improved performance by the same players when listening to upbeat music and lyrics.
Meditation:
Music has been found to cause actual change in brainwave. Researchers found that most music combines many different frequencies that cause a complex set of reactions in the brain, but researchers say specific pieces of music could enhance concentration or promote relaxation.
Mood:
A study found arousal and mood regulation to be the most important dimension of music listening closely followed by self-awareness.
Cognitive function:
Research has shown that upbeat music improves the efficiency and accuracy in performance of workers on assembly lines or quality-control operators. It helps them to stay focused on their work even though what they’re doing is not necessarily interesting, and attention would normally fade over time.
Anxiety:
When used in conjunction with conventional cancer treatments, music therapy has been found to help patients promote a better quality of life; better communicate their fear, sadness, or other feelings; and better manage stress, while alleviating physical pain and discomfort.
Patients:
There is sufficient practical evidence that listening to music while resting in bed after open heart surgery can reduce patients' stress level. Therefore it is recommended that music intervention be offered as an integral part of the multimodal regime offered to patients after cardiovascular surgery. It is a supportive source that increases relaxation. Music is also effective in under conditions and music can be utilized as an effective intervention for patients with depressive symptoms, geriatrics and in pain, intensive care or palliative medicine. However, music used should be carefully selected incorporating a patient's own preferences to offer an effective method to reduce anxiety and to improve quality of life. The most benefit on health is seen in classic music, meditation music whereas heavy metal music or technosounds are even ineffective or dangerous and will lead to stress and/or life threatening arrhythmias.
References:
5 Science-Backed Reasons Why Music is Good for You (Health- Nov 11, 2014)
20 surprising, science-backed health benefits of music (USA Today- Dec 17, 2013)
Effect of Rhythm on the Recovery From Intense Exercise (Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research- April 2013)
Music improves sleep quality in students. (Journal of Advanced Nursing- May 2008)
Fast Food Restaurant Lighting and Music can reduce Calorie intake and increase Satisfaction
(Psychological Reports- Aug 2012)
Positive Emotions and the Endothelium: Does Joyful Music Improve Vascular Health? (Circulation- 2008)
From music-beat to heart-beat: a journey in the complex interactions between music, brain and heart. (European Journal of Internal Medicine-Aug 2011)
Alleviating Choking: The Sounds of Distraction (Journal of Applied Sport Psychology- April 2009)
Symposium looks at therapeutic benefits of musical rhythm
(Stanford News Service- May 2013)
Music and health--what kind of music is helpful for whom? What music not? (Published in a German Medical Journal- Dec 2009)
Physical benefits
Pain:
According to a study published in Frontiers of Psychology, scientists found that listening to music that is relaxing, highly pleasant, familiar, and self-chosen, reduced pain and increase functional mobility in fibromyalgia patients.
Endurance:
British researchers studied 12 healthy male college students riding stationary bikes while listening to six different songs of their choosing, each with a different tempo. It was observed that not only their pedaling speed changed along with the tempo of the music so did their overall affect. As tempo slowed, they slowed the pedaling, their heart rate decreased, breathing slowed and mileage fell. But as music tempo increased so did their pedaling speed, heart rate, distance covered and showed reduced exertion. Hence the conclusion 'healthy individuals performing submaximal exercise not only worked harder with faster music but also chose to do so and enjoyed the music more when it was played at a faster tempo."
In another study, researchers had 20 moderately active adults (22±4 y), unfamiliar with interval exercise, complete an acute session of SIT(Sprint Interval training) under two different conditions: music and no music. Leading to the conclusion ' Music enhanced in-task performance and enjoyment of an acute bout of SIT.'
Post-exercise recovery:
After a workout music not only helps relax, it also helps the body recover faster. A study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research showed beneficial effect of both music and rhythm was greater toward the end of the recovery period. Results suggest that listening to music during non structured recovery can be used by professional athletes to enhance recovery from intense exercise.
Sleep:
A study showed classical music to improve the quality of sleep in individuals with poor sleep. Relaxing classical music can thus be used to help alleviate insomnia instead of sleep inducing medications.
Eating Habits:
A recent study found that with softening of the music and lighting while eating, diners end up eating less and enjoying the food more, suggesting that a more relaxed environment increases satisfaction and decreases consumption.
Blood Flow:
Previous studies have demonstrated that music may influence physiologic parameters such as heart rate and blood pressure. A study of the effect of music on endothelial function showed an increased blood flow and a happier mood.
Mental Benefits
Stress:
Over the past years, music has been increasingly used as a therapeutic tool in the treatment of different diseases in healthy and ill subjects over recent years (e.g., the so called "Mozart effect"). Music has been found to lead to release of biochemical measurable stress-reducing effects in some individuals. Some kinds of music have also been known to cause changes in cardiac and neurological functions.
It has also been seen that music helps individuals perform better under pressure if listening to music. Such a study involving basketball players known to choke under pressure, showed improved performance by the same players when listening to upbeat music and lyrics.
Meditation:
Music has been found to cause actual change in brainwave. Researchers found that most music combines many different frequencies that cause a complex set of reactions in the brain, but researchers say specific pieces of music could enhance concentration or promote relaxation.
Mood:
A study found arousal and mood regulation to be the most important dimension of music listening closely followed by self-awareness.
Cognitive function:
Research has shown that upbeat music improves the efficiency and accuracy in performance of workers on assembly lines or quality-control operators. It helps them to stay focused on their work even though what they’re doing is not necessarily interesting, and attention would normally fade over time.
Anxiety:
When used in conjunction with conventional cancer treatments, music therapy has been found to help patients promote a better quality of life; better communicate their fear, sadness, or other feelings; and better manage stress, while alleviating physical pain and discomfort.
Patients:
There is sufficient practical evidence that listening to music while resting in bed after open heart surgery can reduce patients' stress level. Therefore it is recommended that music intervention be offered as an integral part of the multimodal regime offered to patients after cardiovascular surgery. It is a supportive source that increases relaxation. Music is also effective in under conditions and music can be utilized as an effective intervention for patients with depressive symptoms, geriatrics and in pain, intensive care or palliative medicine. However, music used should be carefully selected incorporating a patient's own preferences to offer an effective method to reduce anxiety and to improve quality of life. The most benefit on health is seen in classic music, meditation music whereas heavy metal music or technosounds are even ineffective or dangerous and will lead to stress and/or life threatening arrhythmias.
References:
5 Science-Backed Reasons Why Music is Good for You (Health- Nov 11, 2014)
20 surprising, science-backed health benefits of music (USA Today- Dec 17, 2013)
Music reduces pain and increases functional mobility in fibromyalgia (Frontiers of Psychology- Feb 11, 2014)
Effects of music tempo upon submaximal cycling performance. (Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports- Aug 2010)
Music Enhances Performance and Perceived Enjoyment of Sprint Interval Exercise. (Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise- Sep 8, 2014)Effect of Rhythm on the Recovery From Intense Exercise (Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research- April 2013)
Music improves sleep quality in students. (Journal of Advanced Nursing- May 2008)
Fast Food Restaurant Lighting and Music can reduce Calorie intake and increase Satisfaction
(Psychological Reports- Aug 2012)
Positive Emotions and the Endothelium: Does Joyful Music Improve Vascular Health? (Circulation- 2008)
From music-beat to heart-beat: a journey in the complex interactions between music, brain and heart. (European Journal of Internal Medicine-Aug 2011)
Alleviating Choking: The Sounds of Distraction (Journal of Applied Sport Psychology- April 2009)
Symposium looks at therapeutic benefits of musical rhythm
(Stanford News Service- May 2013)
The psychological functions of music listening (Frontiers in Psychology- May 24, 2013)
Music therapy in a comprehensive cancer center. (Journal of the Society of Integrative Oncology- Spring 2008) Music and health--what kind of music is helpful for whom? What music not? (Published in a German Medical Journal- Dec 2009)
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Teenagers smoking weed daily far less likely to graduate high school
As the Global Commission on Drug Policy
denounces the so-called “war against drugs” as a failure and suggests
new approaches prioritising human rights and health, new studies on
increased weed use by teenagers show significantly damaging outcomes. Hence the debate about the consequences of adolescent cannabis use is continuing.
The latest research on the subject was published in the British journal The Lancet Psychiatry this month. It was seen that teenagers who smoked weed daily were 60% less likely to graduate high school and far more likely to attempt suicide.
Researchers studied adolescents using marijuana, gathering data on frequency of marijuana use from over 3700 students from Australia and New Zealand and followed their developmental outcomes upto 30 years of age. They found a significant association between frequency of cannabis use during adolescence and most young adult outcomes investigated, even after controlling for potential confounding factors including age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, use of other drugs, and mental illness. Teens who smoked weed were seen to have far more negative outcomes then their counterparts who didn't smoke weed, thus supporting the case against marijuana use by adolescents no matter how infrequent.
Here are some excerpts from The Washington Post article Study: Teens who smoke weed daily are 60% less likely to complete high school than those who never use by Christopher Ingraham on the research.
In a conference call, study co-author Edmund Sillins said that the relationship between cannabis use and negative outcomes is significant even at low levels of use (e.g., less than monthly), and that "the results suggest that there may not be a threshold where use can be deemed safe" for teens.
According to the study, there are significant relationships between cannabis use and high school graduation, college graduation, suicide attempts, cannabis dependency (not wholly surprising), and other illicit drug use.
The author points aptly out that;
A person who uses cannabis less than monthly would have slightly lower odds of graduating high school or getting a college degree, compared to a person who doesn't use at all. Increased use further decreases this likelihood. On the other hand, a person who uses cannabis monthly would have roughly 4 times the likelihood of becoming dependent on cannabis as a person who doesn't use at all.
(Continue reading)
P.S:
Study: Teens who smoke weed daily are 60% less likely to complete high school than those who never use
(Washington Post - Sept 9, 2014)
Young adult sequelae of adolescent cannabis use: an integrative analysis (September 2014)
The latest research on the subject was published in the British journal The Lancet Psychiatry this month. It was seen that teenagers who smoked weed daily were 60% less likely to graduate high school and far more likely to attempt suicide.
Researchers studied adolescents using marijuana, gathering data on frequency of marijuana use from over 3700 students from Australia and New Zealand and followed their developmental outcomes upto 30 years of age. They found a significant association between frequency of cannabis use during adolescence and most young adult outcomes investigated, even after controlling for potential confounding factors including age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, use of other drugs, and mental illness. Teens who smoked weed were seen to have far more negative outcomes then their counterparts who didn't smoke weed, thus supporting the case against marijuana use by adolescents no matter how infrequent.
Here are some excerpts from The Washington Post article Study: Teens who smoke weed daily are 60% less likely to complete high school than those who never use by Christopher Ingraham on the research.
In a conference call, study co-author Edmund Sillins said that the relationship between cannabis use and negative outcomes is significant even at low levels of use (e.g., less than monthly), and that "the results suggest that there may not be a threshold where use can be deemed safe" for teens.
According to the study, there are significant relationships between cannabis use and high school graduation, college graduation, suicide attempts, cannabis dependency (not wholly surprising), and other illicit drug use.
The author points aptly out that;
A person who uses cannabis less than monthly would have slightly lower odds of graduating high school or getting a college degree, compared to a person who doesn't use at all. Increased use further decreases this likelihood. On the other hand, a person who uses cannabis monthly would have roughly 4 times the likelihood of becoming dependent on cannabis as a person who doesn't use at all.
(Continue reading)
P.S:
Study: Teens who smoke weed daily are 60% less likely to complete high school than those who never use
(Washington Post - Sept 9, 2014)
Young adult sequelae of adolescent cannabis use: an integrative analysis (September 2014)
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Why sitting up straight is really important
A bad posture doesn't only make us look unsmart and slouchy, it can lead to some serious health problems. Some of the commonly reported negative effects of a poor posture are;
Sore Muscles:
Because of our slouch our muscles have to work harder to keep the spine and vertebrae in place and protected, we end up with sore muscles by the end of the day.
Spinal Curvature:
A poor posture overtime can cause us to develop a spinal curvature which may effect the weight bearing capability of our spine. Naturally our spines have an "S" shape which is exacerbated with a slouch.
Subluxations:
A subluxation of the spine is the displacement of vertebrae from their normal position. It is a vertebral misalignment which often results from the altered spinal curvature. This leads to a painful back and also may affect the integrity of the whole spine.
Blood vessels constriction:
The altered spinal curvature and resulting subluxation of spine may lead to constriction of blood vessels traveling through the spinal cord. Thus cause blood flow constriction which may cause poor blood supply to muscles and nerves and can even lead to clot formation. Clot formation can be life-threatening as it can lead to deep vein thrombosis.
Nerve constriction:
As nerves are connected to the spinal cord through the length of the spine, any change in its curvature or alignment of vertebrae can lead to their constriction and cause pain in any part of the body. Most often seen are pain in the back or neck.
Here is a great article on first of all improving posture but also with tips on how to fix a bad posture.
Sore Muscles:
Because of our slouch our muscles have to work harder to keep the spine and vertebrae in place and protected, we end up with sore muscles by the end of the day.
Spinal Curvature:
A poor posture overtime can cause us to develop a spinal curvature which may effect the weight bearing capability of our spine. Naturally our spines have an "S" shape which is exacerbated with a slouch.
Subluxations:
A subluxation of the spine is the displacement of vertebrae from their normal position. It is a vertebral misalignment which often results from the altered spinal curvature. This leads to a painful back and also may affect the integrity of the whole spine.
Blood vessels constriction:
The altered spinal curvature and resulting subluxation of spine may lead to constriction of blood vessels traveling through the spinal cord. Thus cause blood flow constriction which may cause poor blood supply to muscles and nerves and can even lead to clot formation. Clot formation can be life-threatening as it can lead to deep vein thrombosis.
Nerve constriction:
As nerves are connected to the spinal cord through the length of the spine, any change in its curvature or alignment of vertebrae can lead to their constriction and cause pain in any part of the body. Most often seen are pain in the back or neck.
Here is a great article on first of all improving posture but also with tips on how to fix a bad posture.
Post by Health, Wellness and Mindfulness.
References:
References:
Negative Effects of Poor Posture (LIVESTRONG.com)
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Teenage cannabis use and schizophrenia
With the growing wave of legalizing marijuana
use across the US, it is important to fully understand the possible
consequences of expected increase in it's unrestricted use, specially
amongst the youth. A group of scientist at the Feinberg School of
Medicine and Northwestern Memorial Hospital have conducted a study which
has found a link between teenage Marijuana (Cannabis) use and
schizophrenia. This study was published by Schizophrenia Bulletin
The brains of teenagers smoking cannabis daily for about three years showed significant structural changes affecting memory. Some of those changes appear very similar to those seen in the brains of schizophrenics.These youngsters also performed badly when tested on memory tasks, indicating poor memory functioning.
As reported by Marla Paul for Northwestern University on Futurity;
This is the first study to target key brain regions in the deep sub-cortical gray matter of chronic marijuana users with structural MRI and to correlate abnormalities in these regions with an impaired working memory.
Working memory is the ability to remember and process information in the moment and—if needed—transfer it to long-term memory. Previous studies have evaluated the effects of marijuana on the cortex, and few have directly compared chronic marijuana use in otherwise healthy individuals and individuals with schizophrenia.
According to the lead study author Mathew Smith an assistant research professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine;
“The study links the chronic use of marijuana to these concerning brain abnormalities that appear to last for at least a few years after people stop using it. With the movement to decriminalize marijuana, we need more research to understand its effect on the brain.”
But in contrast to these findings another study conducted at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, has shown a genetic link between cannabis use and schizophrenia. Kate Kelland reports for Reuters that;
The results chime with previous studies linking schizophrenia and cannabis, but suggest the association may be due to common genes and might not be a causal relationship where cannabis use leads to increased schizophrenia risk.
"We know that cannabis increases the risk of schizophrenia. Our study certainly does not rule this out, but it suggests that there is likely to be an association in the other direction as well – that a pre-disposition to schizophrenia also increases your likelihood of cannabis use," said Robert Power, who led the study at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London.
But what become evident from both these recent studies is the clear connection between adolescent use of cannabis and the development of schizophrenia. Therefore it is important for parents to discourage their children from getting swept up in this growing wave of legal recreational use of marijuana. We need to educate ourselves and our children on the very real dangers and consequences of indiscriminate use of marijuana.
References:
The brains of teenagers smoking cannabis daily for about three years showed significant structural changes affecting memory. Some of those changes appear very similar to those seen in the brains of schizophrenics.These youngsters also performed badly when tested on memory tasks, indicating poor memory functioning.As reported by Marla Paul for Northwestern University on Futurity;
This is the first study to target key brain regions in the deep sub-cortical gray matter of chronic marijuana users with structural MRI and to correlate abnormalities in these regions with an impaired working memory.
Working memory is the ability to remember and process information in the moment and—if needed—transfer it to long-term memory. Previous studies have evaluated the effects of marijuana on the cortex, and few have directly compared chronic marijuana use in otherwise healthy individuals and individuals with schizophrenia.
According to the lead study author Mathew Smith an assistant research professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine;
“The study links the chronic use of marijuana to these concerning brain abnormalities that appear to last for at least a few years after people stop using it. With the movement to decriminalize marijuana, we need more research to understand its effect on the brain.”
But in contrast to these findings another study conducted at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, has shown a genetic link between cannabis use and schizophrenia. Kate Kelland reports for Reuters that;
The results chime with previous studies linking schizophrenia and cannabis, but suggest the association may be due to common genes and might not be a causal relationship where cannabis use leads to increased schizophrenia risk.
"We know that cannabis increases the risk of schizophrenia. Our study certainly does not rule this out, but it suggests that there is likely to be an association in the other direction as well – that a pre-disposition to schizophrenia also increases your likelihood of cannabis use," said Robert Power, who led the study at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London.
But what become evident from both these recent studies is the clear connection between adolescent use of cannabis and the development of schizophrenia. Therefore it is important for parents to discourage their children from getting swept up in this growing wave of legal recreational use of marijuana. We need to educate ourselves and our children on the very real dangers and consequences of indiscriminate use of marijuana.
References:
Teen marijuana use linked with schizophrenia (Futurity-January 3, 2014)
Study finds genetic links between schizophrenia and cannabis use (Reuters-June 24, 2014)
Cannabis-Related Working Memory Deficits and Associated Subcortical Morphological Differences in Healthy Individuals and Schizophrenia Subjects (Schizophrenia Bulletin-December 15, 2013)
Genetic predisposition to schizophrenia associated with increased use of cannabis (Molecular Psychiatry-June 24, 2014)
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